• Nordic gifts are often practical or symbolic.a gift image by Sandi Chetwynd from Fotolia.com
  
  Traditional Nordic wedding gifts, like most wedding traditions, can be traced back to the needs of the newly married couple. When a couple is just starting a life together, they often do not have the things they need to begin a home.
  
  

Money, Money, Money

• Money is considered a traditional wedding gift. While this is an across-the-board tradition amongst weddings, this is something the bride and groom can often use. A collection can be taken while attendees are dancing at the wedding. Oftentimes the patriarch of a family will offer the groom an envelope of money in exchange for a dance with his new bride, or the bride is given the money after the dance while the groom is given a drink. As the couple holds the place of honor, it is also traditional for the bride to hold a sieve, into which guests deposit gifts of cash.
  
  

Wool or Linen

• Wool and linens are other traditional gifts. As the Nordic countries are quite cold, preparing the couple for the winter months is considered prudent. This is considered a nice beginning to a warm and loving home, and the tradition continues today.
  
  

Pine Trees

• Small pine trees represent an old custom. Friends and neighbors would plant two small pine trees on either side of the couple's door as a symbol of fertility. Today, plants and trees can be offered to the couple, representing the same type of joy.
  
  

China and Dishes

• China and dishes are considered another traditional gift. This is the beginning of feeding a new family. During the reception, the bride's mother is expected to put one of these dishes on her head when the couple takes the floor for the first dance. When the plate falls and breaks, the number of substantial pieces it breaks into is rumored to be the number of children the couple will have.
  
  

Spoons

• Wedding spoons are often given as a Nordic wedding gift. As the couple had never lived anywhere but home, these spoons represented the beginning of their lives together. With the arrival of each subsequent child, they were given a new spoon. Today, people often give non--practical spoons, such as pewter, to symbolize the beginning of the married life.